Rick Rubin: Your Producer's Favorite Producer!

Rick Rubin is a producer and is currently the co-head of Columbia Records. He is given credit for merging rap and heavy metal as well as producing the "American Recordings" albums with Johnny Cash. MTV called him "the most important producer of the last 20 years.

But never judge a book by it's cover. Rick Rubin is more than a record company executive, he would better be remembered in history as a person who helped put Hip Hop on the map! During his senior year Rubin founded Def Jam records using a four track recorder. In 1983 with the help of DJ Jazzy Jay they produced "It's Yours" for rapper T La Rock. In 1984 he partnered with Russell Simmons and managed to get his record label off the ground and thus laying the ground work for Def Jam Recordings. Their first record released was LL Cool J's "I Need a Beat". Rubin went on to find more hip-hop acts outside The Bronx, Brooklyn and Harlem including rappers from Queens, Staten Island and Long Island, which eventually led to Def Jam's signing of Public Enemy and the Beastie Boys.

Rubin is also known for his fusion of Rock and Hip Hop. Rubin pioneered the fusion of rap and rock in his work with Run-D.M.C., the Beastie Boys, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Later examples of his rap-rock fusion were Jay-Z's 2003 song "99 Problems" and Lil' Jon's 2004 song "Stop Fuckin Wit Me". The latter sampled Slayer's "Mandatory Suicide" and "Raining Blood", both originally produced by Rubin.

Check out this YouTube clip of Rick Rubin and Russel Simmons discussing working with Jay Z on the 99 problems track.